what he puzzled was vs what he puzzled is

Some examples from the web:

• And he puzzled and puzzled till his puzzler was sore.
• He puzzled everyone some more by coming back and winning his home Grand Prix in Australia and the next race in Malaysia, before crashing out of the last race of 2009 on the warm-up lap.
• No, I was just a little puzzled.
• I puzzled myself to find some vow to fulfill.
• What puzzled me was the disappearance of the witch Darvulia.
• The Mayor, however, was puzzled.
• The Commission is puzzled by this explanation which makes no sense.
• There are two questions that have puzzled me in my entire career.
• Suddenly we have the dynamic inconsistency that puzzled us.
• I'm a little puzzled that you think I do.
• But scientists are still puzzled about what's really inside these cosmic interlopers.
• You see the person puzzled about what was going on inside.
• And that was what really got me puzzled.
• In that case I'm puzzled, Colonel Erhardt.
• Your power source had our organization puzzled for some time.
• I am slightly puzzled by your answer in certain respects.
• A lot of things puzzled Mary especially her mother, Vera Lorraine Dinkle.
• Galileo was puzzled but modern astronomers answer to the conundrum is clear.
• When I read this, I was just very puzzled.
• The puzzled groom knocked the door silly.

Some examples from the web:

• And he puzzled and puzzled till his puzzler was sore.
• He puzzled everyone some more by coming back and winning his home Grand Prix in Australia and the next race in Malaysia, before crashing out of the last race of 2009 on the warm-up lap.
• No, I was just a little puzzled.
• I puzzled myself to find some vow to fulfill.
• What puzzled me was the disappearance of the witch Darvulia.
• The Mayor, however, was puzzled.
• The Commission is puzzled by this explanation which makes no sense.
• There are two questions that have puzzled me in my entire career.
• Suddenly we have the dynamic inconsistency that puzzled us.
• I'm a little puzzled that you think I do.
• But scientists are still puzzled about what's really inside these cosmic interlopers.
• You see the person puzzled about what was going on inside.
• And that was what really got me puzzled.
• In that case I'm puzzled, Colonel Erhardt.
• Your power source had our organization puzzled for some time.
• I am slightly puzzled by your answer in certain respects.
• A lot of things puzzled Mary especially her mother, Vera Lorraine Dinkle.
• Galileo was puzzled but modern astronomers answer to the conundrum is clear.
• When I read this, I was just very puzzled.
• The puzzled groom knocked the door silly.